Safety attachment for automatic train-stops



M. B. BULLA. SAFETYATTACHMENT FOR AUTOMATIC TRAIN STOPS.

APPLIQATION FILED IULV 2. 1919.

1,387,233. mummy, 1 21.

1 WITNESSES nnomrs" carts-a stares MELBERN BENNIE I BULLA, OF EL PASO, TEXAS.

SAFETY ATTACHMENT FOR AUTOMATIC TRAIN-STOPS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 9, 1921.

Application filed July 2, 1919. Serial No. 308,107.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, MELBERN B, BULLA, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of El Paso, in the county of El Paso and State of Texas, have invented a new and Improved Safety Attachment for Automatic Train-Stops, of which the following is a full. clear, and exact description.

This invention relates to automatic train stops and has particular reference to devices of the general character covered by Letters Patent of the United States No. 1,267,179, issued on the 21st day of May,1918.

Among the objects of the present improvement is to correct certain defects or deficiencies in the previous structure and so make. the device more practical and reliable.

In presentation of this invention for the convenience of all the readers of the present as well as the previous specification, similar reference characters so far as expedient will be employed throughoutthe views of both cases.

Of said views- Figure 1 is a diagrammatic side elevation of the improvement carried in a casing with :1 preferably glass front in the locomotive cab, but indicatin also diagrammatically thecontact devices or the track appliances; and

Fig. 2 is a horizontal sectional detail on the line '22 of Fig. 1.

Referring now more particularly to the drawings I show a casing 10 through which extends upwardly an air pipe 11 presumed to be in communication at its lower end with the train air line and open at its top to the atmosphere. Except as otherwise noted be: low the pipe 11 is normally held closed by a trip valve 12 adapted to be operated for opening it by a lever 13 pivoted at 14 and having a rod 15 connected to a suitable power cylinder 16 in the upper portion of the casin 1 7 is a branch pipe shown in this instance as leading laterally from the pipe 11 within the casing and hence being in open communication with the interior of said pipe 11 and normally charged with compressed air. This charge of air is retained in the pipe 17 by means of a valve 18 held closed normally.- against the force of'a spring 19 tending in connection with gravity to open the valve 18 to permit the compressed air to pass through a pipe 20 to the cylinder 16 and also through a branch pipe 21 to actuate the throttle lever, not shown, or any other device to be operated simultaneously with thesetting of the brakes that will take place when the main valve 12 is open to permit the air to escape'through the main pipe 11.

The magnet 23 has an armature 24 connected to the valve 18 by means of a link 25 and so when the magnet is energized the valve is held closed in its normal position.

The battery 26 is carried at any convenient place and its energy is depended upon normally to energize the magnet 23. The course of such energy from the battery is through the wire 27, shoe 28, wire 29, pilot magnet 30, Wire 45, armature 44, contact 46, wire 31, magnet 23, wire 32, contact piece 33, andwire 34 back to the battery.

A brush 35 alongthe track is adapted to be struck by the shoe 28 when a danger signal is set and the train is attempted to be run past thedanger point. Theshoe is made the subject of a se arate application of even date herewith, erial No. 308,108. The

brush is grounded at 36 and when the shoe strikes the brush the energy from the battery 26 is momentarily dissipated to the ground causing the deenergization of both magnets 30 and 23. The circuit at this time will be from the battery through the wire .27, shoe 28, brush 35, ground 36 on one side 'and wire 34, contact piece33, switch blade 37, contact piece 38, and wire 39 to the ground 40. The breaking of the circuit through the magnet 23 to cause the spring 19 to open the valve 18 admitting compressed air from the pipe 17 to the cylinder- 16 causes the application of the brakes through the opening of the main valve 12. A counter 41 makes a record of this automatic opening of the train line through the link connection 42 with the lever 13; Themagnets are again restored by swinging the lever 43 to the position shown in Fig. 1 which is done by the engineer manually. The armature 44 of magnet 30 acts as a switch blade bewhere it will remain by virtue ofthe magnet even though the switch 37 be withdrawn from between the contact pieces 47 and 48. The lever 43 carrying the switch 37 is normally held bridging the contacts 33 and 38 by virtue of a spring 52. i

If the engineer is instructed to passa danger point he may do so by throwing the switch blade 37 away from the contacts 33 and 38 breaking the circuit to the ground 40 so that if the shoe strikes the brush the circuit through the magnets vwill not be disturbed. The upper end of the lever 43,

' however, is connected to a counter 51 so that a record is made of all of the times that the lever 43 is actuated. It the engineer should undertake to defeat the purposes of the in vention by holding, as by tylng the lever 43 in its position spaced from the contacts 33 and 38, the air will be bled from the pipe 11 by means of a normally closed air cock 53, the valve of which is connected by means of a link 54' to the lever 43. The air cock 53 is provided with a small ort 53, the capacity of which is not su cient to stop a train during the short time that elapses while the engineer is passing a switch under orders, but if he should undertake to tie the lever over against the force of the spring 52 the leakage through the port 53 would be suficient to cause the stopping of the tram. ll provide also a vent 55 between the valve 12 and the top of the casing through which the train line may be bled as a result of the intended operation of the automatic devices even though some obstruction or plug should be applied to the open end of the pipe 11 above the casing. The white and red lamps'56 and 57 arefeach arranged in multiple with the normally closed and danger clrcuits respectively'so that the engineer will always know. from an inspection of the lamps the condition of the'mechanism, and the lamps being in multiple in their circuits the circuits are not affected in case of a failure of either of the lamps, said circuits bein conventional and per are forming no part 0 this invention are not illustrated.

I claim:

The combination with an-air brake train line pipe, at normally closed valve serving pressed air and automatic means to open the valve when the train passes a dangerv point without authority, of an auxiliary whereby irrespective of the will of the engineer the train line pipe is bled of air and the train is caused to stop if the manually con- 60 to maintain said pipe charged with com-- trolled devices are not restored within a reasonable time to normal position.

\ MELBERN BENNTE BULL 

